In a battle of two offenses that like to pass the ball, the Pittsburgh Steelers (+3) are set to take on the Cincinnati Bengals (-3) at Paul Brown Stadium. This key AFC North matchup gets underway at 1:00 p.m. ET and fans can catch the action by tuning in to CBS.
Betting Preview: Cincinnati Bengals vs. Pittsburgh Steelers
In this Sunday AFC matchup, Cincinnati is getting picked as the favorite and the team’s currently giving up 3 points. The Steelers are also receiving +120 moneyline odds while the Bengals are -140. Oddsmakers have set the over/under (O/U) at 53 points, and if one side catches a lucky break early, it’ll likely result in a worthy in-game betting opportunity.
The game’s total has been driven lower after opening at 54.5. The original line of -3 has remained firm.
The Steelers are 2-3 against the spread (ATS) and have lost 1.2 units so far in 2018. The team has posted an O/U record of 4-1.
The surprising Bengals are up 3.3 units this season. The team is 4-1 ATS and the over has hit in four of its games.
The Steelers are 2-2-1 straight up (SU), including 0-1 SU against AFC North opponents. The Bengals are 4-1 SU overall and 1-0 SU versus divisional foes.
The Steelers are coming off a resounding 41-17 win over Atlanta last week. Ben Roethlisberger completed 19 passes for 250 yards, three touchdowns and one interception. James Conner (110 rushing yards on 21 attempts, two TDs) led the ground attack while Antonio Brown (six receptions, 101 yards, two TDs) and Conner (four catches, 75 yards) shared the receiving duties in the win.
Cincinnati is coming off of a 27-17 win over Miami in Week 5. The team’s defense let the Dolphins run for 128 yards on 22 rush attempts. Kenyan Drake was a bright spot in the loss, recording 46 rushing yards on six attempts, along with 69 yards on seven catches for Miami. For Cincinnati, Andy Dalton completed 20-of-30 passes for 248 yards, one touchdown and one interception. Joe Mixon (93 rushing yards on 22 attempts) led the running game while A.J. Green (six receptions, 112 yards) and Tyler Boyd (four catches, 44 yards) led the pass-catching attack in the win.
Pittsburgh has run the ball on 33.8 percent of its offensive possessions this year while Cincinnati has a rush percentage of 37.0 percent. The Steelers have rushed for 84.0 yards/game (including 89.0 per game versus North opponents) and have six scores on the ground this year. The Bengals are putting up 95.4 rush yards per game (108.0 in conference) and have four total rushing TDs.
The Steelers offensive scheme has tallied 332.8 yards/contest through the air overall (304.5 per game versus conference opposition) and has 11 passing TDs so far. The Bengals have put up 289.0 pass yards per game (265 against AFC foes) and have 12 total pass scores.
Defensively, Pittsburgh has allowed 105.0 rush yards and 320.4 pass yards per game. The Cincinnati D has allowed 289.8 yards per game to opposing passers and 118.2 yards per game to opposing runners. The Bengals are giving up an adjusted net yards per pass attempt (ANY/A) of only 6.20 to opposing QBs, while the Steelers have allowed a 6.97 ANY/A.
Dalton has managed to complete 94-of-146 passes for 1,108 yards, nine TDs and six INTs. Dalton’s adjusted net yards per pass attempt stands at 6.34 for the season and 6.93 over his past two games. In the other locker room, Roethlisberger is already up to 1,390 passing yards this season, and has completed 111-of-168 attempts with 10 passing touchdowns and five interceptions. Roethlisberger’s got a 7.47 ANY/A, including 6.56 over the last two outings.
Pittsburgh Steelers at Cincinnati Bengals Betting Pick
SU Winner: Bengals, ATS Winner: Bengals, O/U: Under
Team Betting Notes
- The Pittsburgh D has 19 sacks on the year while Cincinnati has just 13.
- The Cincinnati offense has lost one fumble this season while Pittsburgh has lost four.
- The Steelers offense has created five pass plays of 40 or more yards, while the Bengals have put up one such play.
- The Pittsburgh defense has allowed four pass plays of 40 or more yards, while Cincinnati has given up two such plays.
- The Pittsburgh offense has created three rushing plays of 20 or more yards, while Cincinnati has created five such runs.
- The Steelers defense has allowed four rushing plays of 20+ yards, while the Bengals have given up two such runs.
- Cincinnati was favored by 6 points in its last outing and the O/U was set at 48. The under cashed and Cincinnati covered in that 27-17 victory over Miami.
- Over its last three contests, Cincinnati is 2-1 ATS and the over cashed in two of those three.
- In its last three matchups, Pittsburgh is 2-1 ATS and the over cashed in two of those three.
- Pittsburgh was favored by 4 points in its previous game and the Over/Under going into it was 57. The over cashed and Pittsburgh covered in the 41-17 victory over Atlanta.
- As a team, Pittsburgh has produced 3.67741935483871 yards per carry over its past three outings and 3.8 over its last two.
- Cincinnati has averaged 4.3 yards per carry over its last three contests and 4.1 over its last two.
